10/06/2026
Did you know that Buffalo Bill Cody's Writing Desk sits proudly in our Gentlemen's Library!?
There is an inscription on the underside of a locked drawer that reads: "Me, A. Grandfils, certifies that this desk is the desk of Buffalo Bill Colonel Cody. He came to Paris in 1889 to Port Maillot with his circus, which later became Luna Park. My uncle started his barber shop at 32 Rue du Marché in Neuilly-a-Seine. Our grave is in the old Neuilly Cemetery, Rue Victor Noir, near the Pont de Neuilly. He was given it as a gift with his portrait - sold in Rouen in 1972 by me."
In 1889, William Frederick “Buffalo Bill” Cody took his Wild West Show to Paris to perform at the Exposition Universelle (the 1889 Paris Exposition) and was in Paris from 18 May to 14 November. Unfortunately, we do not know who A. Grandfils's hairdresser uncle was or his connection to Buffalo Bill, but we might surmise that he was his hairdresser. It is not known if the desk was taken to Paris by Cody from the USA or purchased in France. Buffalo Bill travelled around the United States and to Canada and Europe but never came to Australasia. The Barker's bought this desk in New Zealand about 20 years ago, but there is no knowledge of how it got to New Zealand...
